Strangled World
by Scyler
Summary: Pre/during Thor 2 Thor and Loki have returned to Asgard with Syria in tow. Her appearance causes tensions to rise but before too much can be done and ancient enemy surfaces. Syria is all but required to defeat them. Can it be done? Or will she die trying?
1. Chapter 1

**Me: Hey, hey, hey! I'm back! I told you I was working on the sequel! Anyway, here is the first chapter of **'Strangled Worlds"**. I really hope that you like it even though it is really short. I felt that where it ended was a good cut off point. Well, please Read and Review (seriously, is it really so hard to click the magical little button on the bottom?) **

"Speaking" - Normal speech

**"Speaking"** - Sign language

**"Speaking"** - Telepathy- *Half telepathy/ half Sign Language (*only when explicitly stated)

_"Speaking" _- text messages

_'Speaking" _- thoughts

* * *

Landing on Asgard was quite a bit bumpier than Syria expected. As they hit the ground she was forced to let to of Thor's cape as she tumbled to the ground. They had landed on the steps outside the palace and the uneven ground made for a bumpy landing, as the young witch was just now figuring out as she rubbed her aching head. Cursing silently to herself she stood, dropping her hand to rub at the newly formed sore spot/bruise on her butt. Tumbling down the stairs was not how she wanted to start this trip. Looking up she found Thor and Loki a few steps above her. Thor was holding onto his brother's shoulders because the raven haired man had staggered when they landed. Syria smirked as she walked silently up the steps, once again standing behind the blond God.

**_"Are you well, friend Syria?"_** he asked telepathically still managing to be conserved over her while being totally worried for his brother.

**_"I'm fine, Thor. My butt and head hurt a bit from tumbling down the stairs but it will go away. Don't worry about me."_** she replied ghosting her fingers down the back of his arm.

**_"As you say." _**Thor replied before he gently tugged his brother up the stairs.

Syria followed closely behind them but didn't go into the throne room after them. Telling Thor that she was going to look for something to disguise herself with she took off down the hall. Once she was far enough for the throne room she reached into the shadows and pulled out a thick black cloak. Grinning to herself she swung it around her shoulders, allowing her invisibility spell to fade. Tossing the hood up over he head she headed back to the throne room. By now several hindered Asgardians were streaming into the grand room. Slipping in with them the young woman easily bypassed the guards. Using small amounts of magic she pushed herself to the front of the crowd, sending a small message to Thor as she did. Finally she made it to the front just as the man presumed to be Odin banged the end of his spear on the ground. The room fell silent at the loud bang.

"My Warriors, my Valkyries, we have come here today to judge this man, Loki Odinson. He has committed grave crimes against the Nine Realms. The foremost of those being the almost destruction of Jotunheim and the annihilation of the Frost Giants as well as the attempted invasion of Midguard." he began looking out over the assembled crowd of Asgardians and waiting a moment before speaking again, "Will anyone stand with him and defend him?"

For a few moments no one moved. The All-Father's question was more of a formality than an actual request. Everyone here knew that no one was likely to stand up for the Trickster God, no mater what he did. Syria smirked under her hood and stepped forward right as the All-Father was ready to move on. All eyes turned to her as she did Loki was the only one who didn't look at her. Silently she raised her left hand, the bandaged appendage catching the eyes of everyone in the room. Loki still hadn't looked up to see why the whole room fell into complete silence but he was starting to wonder about it. Even so he felt it would be better to look down because he had a feeling that the person who was standing up for him was Thor. Closing his eyes he waited for the All-Father to accept his brother's stance. He was not really prepared for what happened next.


	2. Chapter 2

**Me: Hey guys! Thank you to **Pondera 2.0 **for the lovely review and the first following. Anywho, this is a really long chapter. A lot happens so it has to be long. Hope ya'll enjoy! Please read and review!**

"Speaking" - Normal speech

**"Speaking"** - Sign language

**"Speaking"** - Telepathy- *Half telepathy/ half Sign Language (*only when explicitly stated)

_"Speaking" _- text messages

_'Speaking" _- thoughts

-_Speaking-_ Ancient Norse

**Sorry I keep adding more of these but they need to be here. :D **

* * *

"Step forward, stranger, and state your case. If you have a case, that is. It would also be prudent that you reveal yourself. I would not have one of his accomplices attempt any trickery here." Odin said tapping his spear on the ground again.

Loki looked up slightly when the black cloaked figure stepped up next to him. Once again the bandaged appendage appeared and gripped the owner's opposite shoulder. The thick cloak slipped from their shoulders in a flourish, revealing the person underneath. Green eyes widened as he recognized the long indigo hair and the black and red clothing. Sure it was different than the last time he had seen her but it was still her. Syria stood there beside him and proceeded to fold her cloak over her arms and set it down softly in front of her. She looked back up at the All-Father with a small smile on her face, ignoring the way the rest of the room broke out into quiet whispers. It was obvious to them that she was not of Asgard.

No one had ever seen her around so they all began speculating about what realm she came from. The young woman had decided to change into her normal outfit because it was less constricting than her more combat ready clothing. It was easy to tell that the Asgardians were staring at her right shoulder and the scars that rested there but she ignore them. Right now all she could think to focus on was to convince the All-Father of her stance. "You would defend Loki, Mortal? After what he has done to your realm?" Odin asked clearly a little surprised. Syria just nodded. She had a feeling that Odin didn't really know Sign Language so she didn't try to elaborate yet. Glancing over at Thor she took a deep breath before looking around the room. Everyone was waiting for her to speak. Too bad that would take an incredibly long time.

Looking over at Loki she found that he was staring at her with wide eyes. She was internally pleased to note that his eyes were a clear emerald green without any traces of blue. Apparently right before she blacked out she was able to free him from the evil magic controlling him. That was a good thing. Slowly waving hand in front of his face she smirked when he jumped back a bit before she singed a question out to him.

**"Hey, do you think you could ask if there is anyone here who speaks Sign Language besides you and your brother?" **she asked giving him a quizzical look at the same time.

"S-sure." he stammered a little surprised to be asked something like that but before he could say anything Odin spoke up.

"What was that? A silent communication of a plot?" he asked clearly on edge.

"No, All-Father. She is incapable of actual speech so her hands speak for her. She was asking if there is any here who understand the Language of Signs aside from Thor and myself. That is all." Loki replied quickly holding out his bound hands as he did.

"Thor, is this the truth?" Odin turned to his son and Thor nodded.

"It is true, father. The Lady Syria is incapable of actually speaking to us." he said looking at his father.

The All-Father nodded gravely and turned to the assembled Asgardians, "Is there any here who understand this Language of Signs?"

Unsurprisingly no one stepped forward for a few seconds. Then Frigga stepped forward, placing a gentle hand on her husband's arm. Turning the pair spoke quietly for a moment before turning back to the assembly. Frigga glided gracefully down the steps toward Syria and Loki.

Coming to a stop beside the indigo haired woman she spoke, her voice clear and bright, "I, Frigga, will act as her voice. I understand the Language of Signs."

There were a few uncertain murmurs amongst the crowd but no one spoke up. The blond Goddess turned to Syria and gave her a small smile before turning back to face her husband. Syria smirked slightly before following the Goddess' lead. As they stood there Odin nodded at them before proceeding to list out the charges. Syria didn't know much about the Jotunheim thing and her confusion must have crossed the link between her and Thor because the God spoke up.

_**"It happened before the Manhattan incident. Loki had discovered that Father had been lying to him his whole life."**_ Thor began over their link. _**"You see Loki is actually a Frost Giant, not an Asgardian. He also found out that he is Laufey's son, the king of the Frost Giants at the time. It tore him apart. In an attempt to rid himself of this past. In an attempt to rid himself of this he killed Laufey and set the Bifrost on Jotunheim. If left open the bridge could have ripped the world apart. I prevented this by destroying the bridge." **_

_**"OK, cool. I can use this whole 'getting rid of his past thing'." **_Syria thought back shifting slightly.

_**"Very well. Also, you should know, that before he fell Loki said that he could have done it for out father. Will that help?"**_ Thor asked glancing over at her.

_**"Oh, yeah. That actually changes my original plan. Thanks, Thor. You might have just helped me bail your baby bro out of the worst of this."**_

Syria felt a surge of pride from the God at that and she laughed to herself about it. Still she knew she had said the right thing. Shaking her head she refocused on Odin, especially now that he had gotten to the parts about the invasion of Midguard. Quirking an indigo brow she listen to him talk. At least half of his information was incorrect. Thankfully she had access to the file S.H.I.E.L.D. had compiled on the incident. Waving her right hand behind her she performed a minor summoning spell, undetectable by anyone but the two people standing on either side of her. Frigga and Loki shared slightly concerned looks but when Syria pulled out the file folder from behind her back they both relaxed a bit. Gently setting the file on the table she and the other two waited for the All-Father to finish.

When he did he looked at them and said, "What exactly does the Lady Syria have to say on this matter?"

**"When it comes to the almost invasion of Earth, quite a bit actually." **she singed out to Frigga while the Goddess translated.

"Oh? Do enlighten us then." Odin said settling back in his throne.

**"OK. For starters just about all of your information on the incident is wrong. In so many ways." **Syria said pausing to grab the folder before starting again, **"This is the complete report of the entire incident from beginning to end, compiled by the Avengers and S.H.I.E.L.D. a top secret military organization known for its information technology. give it a read and then go back over what you know." **

"Just so you are aware the language of Midguard is not taught here." Odin replied sitting forward slightly.

**"I know that but you are the All-Father, are you not? Would it not imply that you knew how to read English?"** Syria asked giving the man a raised eyebrow as she held out the folder.

The white haired man huffed but waved at Thor to retrieve the folder. Once he had it the God walked back over to his father, handing it over wordlessly. Easily opening the folder the white haired man leafed through it, seemingly appearing not to read it. When he set it down in his lap there was a small frown on his face. Syria tilted her head to the side and waited.

"This is interesting. It would seem that our report is lacking in detail. That is very strange but I still do not see how this is evidence to his innocence. It simply confirms everything that I have stated before." he said leaning forward.

**"I was getting to that, sir." **Syria began a small smirk forming on her face. **"You see Loki was being controlled by an outside force."**

At that the room fell silent for a moment before exploding with sound. Loki jumped at the woman's side but she ignored it. Her eyes were focused solely on Odin. He was regarding her with a narrowed eye that asked a million and two questions. He waited for the noise to die down but when it didn't he stood up. Taking his spear he banged it on the ground twice and the room fell silent once more. Looking back at the woman standing beside his son he was a little surprised to see Loki having to force himself to stand straight and keep his face neutral.  
It took something truly shocking to make Loki have to force himself like that. This was not the calm and collected, if not highly insane, man described in all the reports. This was more like the child Loki used to be, wary of large crowds and preferring to keep to himself. Sitting back down he looked at Syria.

"What proof do you have of this?" was all he said.

**"If you would allow me I would like to show all of you what I saw." **Syria said.

"How would you manage that? Are you a magic user?"

**"Yes, I am a magic user. I was planning on showing you all my memories of my encounters with Loki while he was on Earth."**

Odin weighed the options for a few seconds. There was the possibility that she had altered her memories but then again she had been honest with them all so far. Glancing over at Thor he found his son giving him a slight nod. If Thor trusted her words... then again, Thor had always been far too trusting on occasion. Looking over at Frigga he found his wife regarding the woman with a slightly surprised look.

Feeling her husbands eyes on her she turned to him and nodded. It seemed that the woman was a trustworthy person if Frigga was nodding. Turning back to Syria the All-Father inclined his head at her before rising to his feet. When being shown memories it was best to always be standing, lest you be pulled into them yourself. Syria smiled before accessing her magic. Bringing her hands up she wove a spell that would allow everyone to see what she had. When the spell was ready she pulled up her first memory, actually daring to go back to their first meeting in the sewer. As she moved on she included her memories of helping Loki's floundering magic against the stronger force that controlled it. When she came to their final battle she let the whole thing play out. That is until they got to the point where she blacked out.

Allowing the spell to dissipate she opened her eyes, totally unaware that she had even closed them. When they where all firmly grounded back in reality Odin looked at her.

"I ask this now just to confirm, how sure are you that he is no longer controlled by this blue power?" Smirking she waved for him and Thor to come closer.

Father, Frigga, Thor and Himself along but she had brought all of the people who had crowded themselves into the throne room for his trial. His wonder was cut short when he felt thousands of eyes on him. Looking down at himself his eyes widened. His body was totally transparent and you could see his magic just beneath the surface. Looking back up he found that the same thing had happened to Syria and Frigga. Both women were transparent and their magic was on full display. Then something caught his eye; it was the color of Syria's magic.

The rich sapphire blue magic coiled and pulsed as the teleportation spell fought against another spell. That wasn't what had totally thrown him off. It was the fact that his magic recognized hers. Sure, he knew that she had used her magic to free him from the control of the evil magic. It was just surprising that his magic willingly reached out for hers. That had never happened before and he wasn't exactly sure if it was a good thing or bad thing. A soft gasp from Frigga dragged him back to reality. She and Odin were looking at him, eyes wide. Looking back down at himself he found that there wasn't a trace of the blue magic that had controlled him. Looking up he managed a small smile at his mother and Odin before looking over at Syria. She was smiling her self but he could tell that supporting half a teleportation spell on so many people was seriously draining. Perhaps now would be a good time to speak up.

"I know I might not have a lot of say here but I think it might be high time for us to return to the physical plane." he said shooting a glance at Syria, who still had ahold of his hand thankfully.

"Very well." Odin said after Frigga squeezed his hand. "Lady Syria, please send us back."

Syria just nodded and released the spell. As the world solidified around them the bluenette dropped Frigga and Loki's hands so she could lean back against Thor. Thankfully the blond God took the hint and stayed put. Otherwise she probably would have ended up sprawled out across the floor in a totally indecent heap. She stayed there for a few moments, blue-green eyes closed as she regained her composure. Eventually she was able to stand up straight she looked over at Odin and Frigga. They were talking softly in Ancient Norse to each other and the more Syria listened the more she understood. It also did help that Thor was translating in her head what they were saying.

_-This is as true as it can get, my love. She was not lying. I felt there to be no tampering with either her memories or what she just showed us. Loki was being controlled but now he is not.-_ Frigga said gently gripping her husband's arm.

_-I hear you, my queen, but there is still the crimes against Jotunheim that we must deal with. Even if he was being controlled while on Midguard I do not see how he could have been controlled during those events. We cannot ignore them.-_ Odin replied shooting a quick look over at Loki.

_-I understand that but perhaps there is a good reason for his actions. If there is I would say that we have him find a way to make amends to the Jotuns. Perhaps after that they will be willing to forgive him. And us.-_ Frigga said this time taking the route of appeasement.

The white haired man considered this for a moment before he nodded slowly. Frigga's face lit up as her husband agreed. Both turned back to Syria, Thor and Loki. They both seemed a little surprised at the knowing look on the young woman's face but the All-Father decided to question it later. Right now there were more pressing matters at hand.

"We have heard you testimony on his actions on Midguard but how can you explain his actions on Jotunheim? I am aware that you were not around for that event but I wish to hear your take on it." he said giving the young witch a slightly raised eyebrow.

**"Easy. He wanted your approval. You give most of your attention to Thor. Always have. He just wanted you to acknowledge him as your son and to have you be proud of him fro something rather than to have you look down on him because he wasn't like Thor or any of the other Asgardians." **Syria replied easily glancing over her shoulder at Thor when he gave her shoulder a gentle squeeze.

Odin pulled back slightly at that. He really hadn't expected something like that. In all honesty he had be expecting something more along the lines of "He simply felt like it" or "He was bored and this was a way of getting rid of his boredom". The whole "He just wanted you to actually recognize him as your son rather that just something in the background" was surprising. Glancing over at Frigga he found that his wife was as surprised as he was. IT wasn't often that she heard about her youngest just wanted to be noticed for what he really was to the family rather than what he was often seen as instead.

After a long look at each other they both turned slightly to look at Loki. The raven haired God was staring at Syria like she had suddenly sprouted a seconds head. The blond queen looked closely at her youngest and saw the shock in his eyes. Apparently what the indigo haired young woman had just said was actually true. Looking back over at her husband Frigga found the same conclusion in his eye. Loki really had just wanted to get his father's approval and love. Turning back to Syria Odin just looked at her for a few seconds before he seemed to finally come to a decision.

Giving the woman a nod he turned to the room at large, "It has been proven here today that Loki was not of his right mind during the almost invasion of Midguard. As such that particular charge against him will be removed. As for his actions concerning Jotunheim I will be speaking with their king and we will be finding a suitable way for him to repay for what has happened."

A loud noise rose from the assembled Asgardians but it was unclear if it was happy or angry. Seconds later the massive doors to the room opened and people began filing out. Most would be heading off to drink while others actually were headed off to bed. Odin and Frigga turned back to Syria, Thor, and Loki once the hall was clear and the doors had closed again. Frigga smiled before reaching over and gently pulling the cuffs off of Loki's wrists. Amazingly the green eyed God was able to give her a tentative smile before he looked over at the All-Father again. The white haired God nodded at him as he turned to Syria, waving his hand as he did so. Blue-green eyes widened slightly as three rings formed on her fingers. Loki looked down when he felt identical rings on his fingers as well. Both looked up rather confused at this turn of events.

"This rings will act as a dampener for your magic, Loki. You will still have access to it but only as much as the Lady Syria allows." Odin said looking between the two and settling on Syria for a moment. "I do have to say, you handled yourself quite well. I would like to see how you would work in another situation like this one, though."

As soon as the words were out of his mouth a loud song filled the room. All of the Gods present panicked, looking around the room like the expected something to come crashing down on their heads. Syria, on the other hand, flailed for a second before digging her hands into her pockets. Finally she managed to fish her cell phone out of one of her butt pockets. Amazingly the screen wasn't cracked despite the fact that she had landed on her ass several times today. Clicking the screen open ended the song and drew the attention of all the people around her. Scrolling around she found a new text message. Pulling it up her eyes widened.


End file.
